U.S. Diesel Fuel Cost Survey

WASHINGTON - Jan 10/08 - SNS -- The weekly diesel price provides a proxy for trends in U.S. truck rates, according to the USDA.

Diesel fuel is a significant expense for agriculture commodity movements by truck, accounting for 37% of the estimated variable cost.

    Retail On-Highway Diesel Prices to January 7
                      (US$/gallon)
                                   Change    Change
Region Location           Price   Week ago  Year ago
I      East Coast         3.436     0.037     0.916
       New England        3.644     0.044     0.972
       Central Atlantic   3.554     0.035     0.921
       Lower Atlantic     3.366     0.038     0.908
II     Midwest            3.345     0.036     0.862
III    Gulf Coast         3.318     0.025     0.859
IV     Rocky Mountain     3.276     0.007     0.594
V      West Coast         3.474     0.023     0.650
       California         3.526     0.035     0.670
Total  U.S.               3.376     0.031     0.839